Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. The choice: Leave, or hunker down. after a two-alarm fire broke out Monday at the site, decried the lack of access to clean water. On Monday morning, workers removed vehicles, furniture and other items from the encampment on Caltrans property underneath the MacArthur Maze. In a lawsuit filed this week, grassroots group Neighbors. Hall of Justice. He issued a temporary injunction on July 19, 2022. Officials said they do not know when construction on a community cabin site would begin. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. Narcan spray and other sanitary products can be seen on a book shelf at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, May 2, 2022. The encampment is now so huge that some residents drive buses and motorcycles to get from one end to the other. There are about 4,000 homeless people many of them living in at least 140 . Walters: Is ending Californias homelessness just a matter of money? Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. The complaint stated, "The residents of 1707 Wood Street have nowhere to go. The new report, completed by City Auditor Courtney Ruby, found that the EMT was "overwhelmed by the undertaking of closing and cleaning encampments throughout Oakland." Ruby found that Oakland spent $12.6 million on tasks related to encampments over the past two years, and roughly $1,500 an hour on camp closures and cleanings. Under state law, working with homeless individuals to identify housing or shelter alternatives is a local, not a state, responsibility.. He found that the plaintiffs raised at least a significant question about whether the doctrine applied to them and concluded that under all the circumstances, including the weather and the ongoing "tripledemic," it was appropriate to issue the TRO, though he telegraphed that the pause on eviction would not be unlimited. I do not look forward to being kicked out. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Workers remove a couch from the Wood Street homeless encampment on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. But if it fails to get people into real shelter and housing, it could be a cautionary tale for officials throughout California struggling with mushrooming encampments. The encampment is one of the largest in the city and has been plagued with problems such as illegal dumping and fires for years. The majority of the $12.6 million spent over the past two years went to staff and equipment associated with closing and cleaning encampments, as well as providing garbage services, portable toilets and water at camps. Related Articles Caltrans plans to clear out 200 homeless people from the sprawling homeless encampment at Oaklands Wood Street by the first week of August, officials said. Homeless Action Center Oakland, CA3 weeks agoBe among the first 25 applicantsSee who Homeless Action Center has hired for this roleNo longer accepting applications. The Encampment Management Policy seeks to address the adverse health and safety impacts of unsheltered homelessness, with compassion and care to not criminalize poverty. Its unclear whether residents will be open to moving to a city-sanctioned site. We do need permanent supportive housing and where is it? City lawyers had no comment on the ruling. Because of the connection to the earlier litigation, the case was assigned to Judge Orrick who entered a TRO on January 6, 2023. The city of Oakland agreed to assist residents on identifying their options. The City Council has to approve the plans and construction is likely to take longer than other sites because a set of railroad tracks cuts through the property. the city has scheduled sweeps of the site, cleared the parts of the encampment on its property. If its model is a success, Oakland could win more state funds to help more Wood Street residents. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. If you or someone you know is hungry, homeless, or housing insecure - Call 2-1-1. Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. When U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick issued a temporary restraining order on Jan. 6, 2023, forbidding the city of Oakland from closing a homeless encampment at 1707 Wood St., he told the . street outreach, homeless shelters, transitional housing, housing exits, and permanent supportive housing as needed. The result is a shuffling with no long-term strategy on how to get people into more permanent, supportive housing. A large column of black smoke rises Tuesday, April 5, 2022, from a fire at a homeless encampment next to West Grand Avenue and Wood Street in Oakland's Prescott neighborhood. Gavin Newsoms office publicly excoriated Oakland officials for failing to cooperate and threatened to withhold state funds. Despite the problems, Wood Street residents say they look out for each other and have formed a self-sufficient community, building homes using wood panels and doors among the abandoned railroad tracks. Antioch council to discuss new liquor stores ban, homeless housing As of last week, the city has offered shelter beds to about 70 people at the Wood Street encampment, according to the court filing. Its absurd to think that we've gotten this far through this process and we have not had anybody take a survey of who is actually affected by this, McGowan said at the hearing. After Caltrans clears part of the encampment, residents move to another part sometimes city property. Plaintiffs' lawyers did not respond to an inquiry as to whether they would seek to appeal or otherwise challenge the determination. Some people keep watch out for fires or other dangers. Alameda Hot Spot Makes Best Sandwich List, Health Emergency Ends, COVID Vigilance Does Not, American Tulip Day & Free, U-Pick-Tulips 2023: Union Square, San Francisco, St. Patrick's Day Pub Crawl: LepraCon San Francisco, Before & After Photos Show CA's Snowpack, Reservoirs After Storms, Best Bay Area Sandwiches + Stranded Hiker Rescued: Saturday Smiles, Sprawling Estates, Suburban Dreams: 11 Featured Bay Area Homes, The Poop On Free-Range Cats And Your Lawn And Garden [Block Talk], Monarch Butterflies: Our Fluttery Friends Are Wintering In The Area, Visit CA's National Parks For Free On 5 Fee-Free Days In 2023, Alameda County Gardening: November Checklist, Growing Spinach In Containers: Alameda County Gardening, What To Do In Alameda County Gardens In October. Oakland which has more than 5,000 homeless people currently has 598 year-round, city-funded shelter beds, 313 community cabin and temporary structure shelter spaces, 147 RV safe parking. The homeless population has jumped by 63% since 2017 in Oakland, where the median house sales price is about $750,000. For now, it appears that camp residents will have at least another long weekend at the park before the standoff continues. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones points to a map of the area hes living near at the Wood Street encampment on April 29, 2022 in Oakland, California.on Friday. Oaklands biggest homeless encampment could massively shrink with planned sweep of 200 people, Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area. We appreciate your patience; the homelessness@oaklandca.gov service has been restored. Driven by a housing crisis and continuing economic inequality that hits Oakland's most vulnerable. February 22, 2023. Oakland has responded to the crisis level surge in homelessness with emergency measures like community cabins. It is . Oakland is experiencing a network outage that is affecting key services such as Oak311, permitting and business tax. Residents sued in July, saying it was more dangerous to force people to move on such short notice with no alternatives for shelter or housing. Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years The audit also found the city needs to collect better data on encampments, increase outreach to unhoused people, provide better notice to camp residents before a camp will be closed, improve its efforts to collect and preserve residents belongings when a camp is closed, and create a comprehensive policy on transporting displaced camp residents. Jones and several other residents want the city and state to give them the land to build their own community, equipped with a kitchen and common area to play music. Related Articles Neighbors tell Da Lin the looming closure is long overdue. July 11, 2022 / 6:27 PM / CBS San Francisco. Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. You can report an encampment at the following locations: Bridges Highways Parks or playgrounds Outside of residential and commercial buildings Roadway tunnels Streets and sidewalks Subway stations Report an encampment. Housing | The man was bleeding and was very confused asking police what he had done wrong. There are 32 beds available in the new tiny home site off Wood Street, and another 28 new safe parking spaces in East Oakland, the city said in a court filing. Los Angeles, California 90012. The order is the latest in a long-running dispute over a homeless camp that once covered 40 acres under the Nimitz Freeway in Oakland, where between 200 and 300 people lived in vehicles, RVs, tents and other makeshift structures. Sarah Ravani (she/her) is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Velena Jones reports. News Feb 07, 2023 The only way to get through involves stepping over bulky items, bbq grills, bikes, tents, and garbage. We cant go far, Clutch said. Hayward couple file lawsuit over harrowing honeymoon ocean ordeal in Hawaii. The residents would have a social contract, love thy neighbor and do no harm, Jones said. Homeless Encampment at 9418 Edes Ave Oakland, CA, 94603, USA: Im a community member and my street is getting full of RV and abandoned cars for many months now. Thats on top of nearly 90 fires at the site for the 12 months through March. The Oakland City Council has . The Citys suggestion that it has no responsibility for homeless individuals on state property unless there is a specific earmark is simply unacceptable, Patterson wrote. Mayor Libby Schaaf, city administrator Ed Reiskin, police Chief LeRonne Armstrong and Daniel Cooper, the citys newly appointed homelessness administrator, were at Wood Street on Wednesday. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones points to a map of the area hes living near. Gavin Newsoms administration just awarded Oakland a $4.7 million grant to come up with a model at Wood Street one that can be replicated in other cities. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones plays guitar. Multiple fires have erupted at the city's largest homeless encampment, which. The city spent $12.6 million over the past two fiscal years, mostly unbudgeted, to manage the camps that have spread across city streets, sidewalks, parks and open spaces, according to a report released Wednesday by the city auditor. Credit: Darwin BondGraham. While the city was working to open a safe parking area for RVs that would accommodate 29 vehicles and a "cabin community" with 31 beds, neither site was yet ready for occupancy. (Beth LaBerge/KQED) Caltrans crews remove a vehicle from the Wood Street encampment in West Oakland on July 19, 2022. A lawsuit alleges that Stanford-trained chemists Alexander Burckle and Elizabeth Webster nearly drowned after a dive boat left them behind in choppy water near Maui. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Workers remove debris from the Wood Street homeless encampment on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. "What I have tried to do is create a possibility of relocation in a way that is the least harmful to the people who live on Wood Street," he said at the hearing. They declined to speak to reporters. (213) 229-1700. The city did not say exactly when it planned to begin closing the encampment, but said it would make reasonable efforts to avoid displacing people during excessive rain or very cold weather. that was may . She graduated from American University with a BA degree in literature with a minor in journalism. The city estimates there are at least 140 encampments scattered throughout Oakland. What could reparations mean for Black residents of Alameda County? Clutch, a 40-year-old resident, holds his neighbors dog, Panda, near his van at Oaklands Wood Street homeless encampment. If you would like to report new concern, please use the TacomaFIRST 311 online system or call 3-1-1 within city limits or (253) 591-5000 outside the city. Theo Cedar Jones (third from right) and other residents of the Wood Street encampment proposed self-governing during a meeting with Oakland staff in July. Cars, RVs and debris burned Monday, sending a giant cloud of smoke into the sky, and freezing highway traffic in the vicinity. She has provided coverage on wildfires, mass shootings, the fatal shooting of police officers and massive floods in the North Bay. But Orrick said requiring Caltrans to provide those resources was beyond the scope of the law. Oakland residents told a polling firm in 2023 that homelessness, such as at the Wood Street encampment, is their top concern for the city to address in its coming budget. She graduated from American University with a BA degree in literature with a minor in journalism. A large fire that swept through a homeless encampment underneath the 880 Freeway in West Oakland on Monday destroyed several vehicles and RVs before it was put . Homelessness has doubled in the last 10 years. Marisa Kendall is a housing reporter for the Bay Area News Group who covers homelessness for The Mercury News and East Bay Times. Russell Wilson asked for Pete Carroll, Seahawks GM to be fired; QB denies report. The land was mostly owned by Caltrans and after a history of fires on the site and concerns about the proximity of a nearby oxygen production plant on July 15, 2022 the agency gave residents five-days' notice to clear the site. A separate request earlier this month to halt Oakland workers from clearing parts of the encampment on land it owns was denied. OAKLAND, Calif. ( KRON) Caltrans announced in a press release Friday that it will shut down the homeless encampment on Wood Street. You will be asked to sign off on an arrest warrant. According to a report by the city administrative officer, the new East Hollywood campground costs approximately $2,663 per participant per month. She previously covered startups and venture capital for the Bay Area News Group and prior to that court cases for The Recorder in San Francisco. A large fire broke out at the encampment on Monday,. kept in homes through Keep Oakland Housed in Fiscal Year 19-20, moved from homelessness to permanent housing in Fiscal Year 19-20, Oakland doubled transitional housing capacity from 2018-2020, City of Oakland Opens 100-bed Cabin Shelter Program at Wood Street, Estelle Clemons, Interim Director of Human Services and, Daniel Cooper, Homelessness Administrator, The Funding will enable the Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing project to make accessibility and other improvements to the building to address the needs of some of our most vulnerable neighbors, Learn About the City's Homelessness Strategy, Joint Statement regarding Homeless Services Performance Audit, City of Oakland Receives $5.6M Homekey Award for Transitional Housing Acquisition and Rehabilitation. Caltrans can begin evicting the estimated 200 people who live under an 880 overpass in West Oakland after Labor Day, a federal district judge ruled Friday. After nearly two-month delay, judge allows, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Bay Area weather: After thunderstorms and hail, snow could be on the way this weekend, After nearly two-month delay, judge allows Oakland to remove large homeless camp, Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided, Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation, Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years.